The Cavs controlled this game wire-to-wire.
The Cleveland Cavaliers looked like the team with fresher legs on Friday. They were a step ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks who were just coming off of winning the NBA Cup in Las Vegas three days ago. Cleveland ran away with a stress-free 124-101 victory.
Being able to make Giannis Antetokounmpo work was one of the reasons why the Cavs were able to win so easily. Antetokoumpo still got his baskets, but the Cavs made it difficult with a big and versatile starting frontcourt of Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen.
That imposing front line kept the Cavs from collapsing their defense the way the Oklahoma City Thunder had to on Tuesday against Antetokounmpo. This resulted in the Bucks being held to just 23 three-point attempts when they pulled their starters at the start of the fourth.
Sometimes all you can do for a player as good as Antetokounmpo is make him work. Cleveland did so even though he still ended up with 33 points.
The offense has been the difference-maker this season and was again on Friday. Their ability to just get hot and stay hot for extended stretches can turn close games into blowouts as it did here. The Cavs were 19-39 (48.7%) from three when they pulled their starters at the start of the fourth quarter.
Donovan Mitchell led that potent attack. He was assertive when needed as he put up 27 points and 6 assists in just 27 minutes.
Mitchell wasn’t alone. Darius Garland and Evan Mobley both had strong showings. Garland contributed 16 points and 5 assists while Mobley added 15 points while being a part of Cleveland’s sound defense on Antetokounmpo. Dean Wade provided 15 points.
Max Strus made his season debut but struggled to find his rhythm early on. He looked like someone who hasn’t played an NBA game since last spring as he missed some open shots and was a little jumpy on defense in the first half. Strus turned it around in the second after knocking down a few threes while moving well off ball. Overall, it was a solid showing from someone making their season debut over a quarter of the way into the season. Strus finished with 9 points on 3-8 shooting in 19 minutes.
The Cavs didn’t take the Bucks’ best punch. They seemed to use that on the Thunder on Tuesday. But that isn’t something the Cavs can control. Cleveland came out, played their game, and put the contest away earlier. That’s what good teams do when they have an advantage.
